Magic Can Be
by ice queen
Summary: A teaching job that takes place near the largest library on the planet leads to Levy tagging along with Gajeel and Pantherlily. Secrets are kept, chairs are fought over, and we might even find out if Gajeel can read! Gajeel/Levy -Complete-
1. Possessive

This was written before the new arc started, so it'll be somewhat of an AU. I still like it and I did promise the guys that read my "Me and My Cat" fic, so here we go! And as usual, I don't own Fairy Tail, I'm not making a profit off of it, etc. There are a few mentions of things found in "Me and My Cat" such as Robo-Lily's mini buster marm. If you haven't read it yet and want to know about that stuff, go read it now! And read The Tsundere, too! *shameless plug*

And I know I just posted a chapter this morning for a different fic, but I figured I'd jump on the bandwagon for the Gajeel/Levy lovefest! Enjoy! And leave a review, it might make me want to update sooner! *bribes*

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**Magic Can Be...**

**By Ice Queen**

_Chapter 1: Possessive  
_

When Gajeel jerked in the middle of his meal, Lily knew something had happened. His ears twitched, sorting through the various conversations in the room to see which of them had pissed off the metal dragon in the corner. He had it narrowed down to a conversation about what Gajeel had done to the guild before joining and an argument over where Luxus was seen last when the metal dragon stood, his chair screeching across the wood and turned.

He wasn't looking at either of the people that Lily had pinpointed. He was looking at that one girl, Lisanna, who was talking with the "fishtail" guy that usually followed Levy around. That confused the hell out of Lily, who had dismissed it out of hand the moment he realized it was just fishtail trying to get a date out of her.

"What?" Lily asked, when no answer became clear. For a second Gajeel looked at him before shrugging and heading for the bulletin board to pick out another mission. Lily stood there for a moment before letting out a sigh and taking to the air to see what was going on. The last mission Gajeel had picked had paid off this month's rent and supplied enough metal for a few weeks, so they didn't really need another one quite this soon.

Something was definitely wrong. "Gajeel!" Makarov called from where he sat on the bar. "I've got a mission you might like!"

Gajeel turned to him, practically growling as he crossed over to the old man. "I already have a mission thanks to you, you know," he muttered lowly.

"Ah, but this is one of your favorite types!" Makarov said, flourishing a piece of paper. "The moment I saw it on the board I knew I had to give it to you. Even if Levy said something about being willing," he added as Gajeel looked at the sheet.

Lily took to the air, reading over the metal dragon's shoulder. "Another teaching job?" he asked quietly as Gajeel's shoulders relaxed.

"Yeah," Gajeel said, the bristling magical energy that had been rolling off of him calming down so much that Lily unconsciously relaxed as well and took the sheet from him.

"Should I send word that you're coming?" Makarov asked.

"I want to go too!" The entire room turned, staring in shock as Levy, already carrying her bag, raced through the group to the three males at the bar. "I knew it was still up for grabs!" she complained to the Guild Master. "I want to try my hand at it!"

"Sorry, it's already claimed," Gajeel said.

"You can take a team! Natsu always takes a team, no matter what the mission is!"

"I'm not taking three of you for a mission like this," Gajeel told her. "That's the last thing I need. You'll just get in the way."

The worried looks and questions whispered throughout the room, wondering just what horrible mission it was that the Guild Master had reserved it for Gajeel, and how crazy Levy was for wanting to do it instead.

"Then-then I'll go by myself," Levy said boldly. "I want to try it at least once! And besides," she went on, flushing slightly, "it's right next to the most massive library on the planet! Can you imagine how many books I'll be able to read during a week long mission?"

Gajeel moved closer, looming over the tiny teenager with a dangerous smile. "And you'll be alone with me for an entire week, will you?"

"You don't scare me," she said, her shoulders squaring. "Besides, we won't be alone. Lily will be there!"

Gajeel's jaw dropped, his eyes widening as he tried to take in that very, very logical conclusion. Levy looked positively thrilled with the fact that she had gotten him firmly cornered with that one. They both knew that Lily liked Levy and wouldn't let Gajeel do anything, even if he was technically Gajeel's cat. And, more importantly, Lily was one of the few guild members around with the ability to stop the metal dragon, or at least delay him for a long period of time.

"Dammit," the metal dragon finally muttered. "You're paying for your own room and board," he finished, turning for the door.

"Yes! Brookerstein Library, here I come!" Levy cheered before chasing after them. "If I don't follow you now, you're just going to disappear, aren't you," she complained as she took three steps to match his every one. "How do you do it? Maybe we could figure out a way to work our styles together, you know? I could te-" She jerked as his hand clamped over her mouth, stopping her from going on.

"Not here," he muttered, waiting for her to nod before letting go.

"Can I at least see the flyer again? I only got to glance at the location before Master Makarov stole it," she said, looking down to where Lily was walking beside them. Silently the Exsheed handed up the sheet to her. She almost turned down the wrong street she was so busy looking over the information and Gajeel reached out, grabbing her by the back of the shirt to keep her from running into a pole or sign at least three times before they reached their apartment to pack.

At last she folded the paper and slipped it into her pocket in order to look around their apartment as they headed for their room to pack. Lily could hear the clinking of the "remember" and "don't remember" boxes which said she had made herself right at home. When they came out she was sitting on their floor, looking at a strangely shaped gear with a confused expression.

"What is this?" she asked them curiously.

"A late night dessert," Gajeel said. "C'mon, we got a train to catch." He was uncomfortable having her in his home, and it showed at how he bristled. Lily would have told him that this was a good opportunity except for a few facts that the Exsheed already understood after this amount of time with his partner. First, Gajeel already knew. He wasn't that stupid. And secondly, Gajeel would probably blow it, and the metal dragon knew that just as well.

The two looked at each other, and Lily had the gall to snort.

"Oh, shut up," Gajeel muttered irritably.

Levy looked at them both, frowning slightly. "Cana told me that you two can talk without anyone hearing you. Are you two talking about me behind my back?"

"No need to," Lily said.

"And what does that mean?" she demanded.

"Oye, you're not coming on this trip just because one of your boyfriends is cheating on you, are you?" Gajeel asked.

"Boyfriends?"

"Yeah. One of them is hitting on the new girl."

"Oh," she said, shrugging. "I'm not surprised. She's cute, isn't she?"

"You're not jealous?" he asked, sounding surprised.

"Why should I be? If he finally gets a girlfriend that means one less hammering at me to date him," Levy said with a shrug as they headed down the street to the train station. "And I would like to see at least one of them happy," she added with a thoughtful frown. "It's too bad we don't have any new girls other than her in the guild, I could have gotten lucky and had both of them out of my hair!"

"So you're not pissed?" Gajeel asked her.

"Pissed?" she repeated blankly.

He looked at her blankly. "You don't think about this sort of stuff much, do you?"

"After we check in with the town about the job, can we go to the library?" she asked. The question seemed to have been lost on her, Lily thought with amusement. That or she didn't care to answer and was playing it off.

"Figures," Gajeel muttered as she sped up. Lily shook his head with a hint of amusement and kept walking. This was going to be a very interesting mission.

They boarded the train, heading for one of the cheaper compartments, and Gajeel promptly made himself comfortable by lounging over two chairs. Lily gave him a dirty look before climbing into the chair Gajeel's leg was occupying and shoving it off. Gajeel smirked at him and put his leg back up again. The two fought silently over the chair as Levy put her things away and sat down across from them, watching with amusement and a hint of amazement.

"Lily, you can sit by me if you want," she said finally.

"No he can't," Gajeel told her. "He's my cat."

"Thank you, Levy, but this is my chair," Lily told her, shoving the leg off again when he said "my chair."

"Do you two do this on every mission?" she asked, giggling at them.

"What?" Gajeel asked, his leg halfway up and already being pushed away. He jerked and gave Lily a dirty look as the Exsheed pulled out a miniature Buster Marm, threatening to stab his leg. "You stole that from Robo-Lily, didn't you?"

"Mirajane-san asked me to sharpen it," Lily said. "I forgot I had it."

"Sure you did," Gajeel drawled. The two started fighting over the blade this time, leaving Levy to watch with wonder as the same man that had terrified her in the past got beaten by a flying cat. By the time the two were done, Gajeel was sound asleep with his arms wrapped around the Exsheed and his leg hanging over Lily's chair yet again.

With a reluctant smile of amusement Levy flipped on the light above her and pulled open her book.


	2. Exhausting

(Anime spoilers in the rant)

I loved the idea of Gajeel having a great reputation as a teacher. It just killed me. And another thing, which I forgot to mention last chapter, for everyone that's been watching the anime, how many fangirl moments did you have? I honestly went back and rewatched the scenes where Gajeel was using Levy as a support. Seriously, so cute! And the part where he protected her again *happy*. It almost makes up for the fact that we won't be seeing either of them (except maybe next ep or fillers) until the next arc is over.

But then again, I can't WAIT to see anime Wendy.

And, update for those that read "Me and My Cat," I was bored (work's going a bit slow, being a secretary does that sometimes) so I found myself writing two more shorts for it. Both of which I really love, so I'll be posting one or the other soon^^

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**Magic Can Be...**

By Ice Queen

_Chapter 2: Exhausting_

"Oh, my," the tiny little man wearing oversized glasses said as he looked up at Gajeel. He shoved his glasses up his nose and glanced hopefully over at Levy. "One of you is Gajeel Redfox?" he asked, clearly showing that he'd prefer it to be the cute little blue haired girl.

"I am," Gajeel said.

"Oh, yes, yes, I did hear you were a very... special mage," the little man said, swallowing loudly. "In fact, I heard from a few of my colleagues that you did marvelous work with their town children. They said twice as many turned out to be magically endowed than they had expected."

"Yeah," Gajeel said.

"But they said you worked alone or with a cat?"

"My cat's getting our supplies," Gajeel said. "This is Levy, she's forced her way into the mission."

Levy gave him a dirty look, but stepped forward, offering the small man her hand. "Levy McGarden," she said. "I'm a solid script mage," she added.

"And you are a-" the tiny man trailed off, looking at Gajeel.

"He's an Iron Dragon Slayer," Levy provided.

"Oh, oh my," the man said, starting to sweat. "But you do have good references as a teacher, and your guild master recommended you for this job specifically, so welcome, Mage Redfox," he went on bravely, holding out his hand to the dragon slayer.

Gajeel looked at it, only to be distracted as a massive bag of items landed on the ground beside him. "Here's the stuff," Lily said, dropping down on the bag that was a good three times larger than he was.

"Oh, a... talking cat," the man said. "How fascinating! The children will just love that! But how do you get him to fly?" he asked Gajeel.

"Usually I threaten to take his blade back," Gajeel said idly as he looked around the field in front of them. All of the little kids in the town were standing around waiting. It was a decent turn out.

"I thought you were just here to teach them," Levy said as she followed his line of sight.

"First we got to find out which ones are teachable," Gajeel told her. "This is just to find out who needs to find a more permanent teacher," he added as he pulled open the bag that Lily had brought, sorting through all their props. "As well as to establish the basics." He pulled out a stack of cones, handing them to Lily. "Go set up the route, I'll get the obstacles ready."

They separated, having done this several times before, and went to work. It was only when he felt a tug on his shirt that Gajeel even remembered that Levy had come along. "I want to help," she said. "What are you doing?"

He looked down at her, then at the set of stairs he was building in the middle of the route. "There's some things in the bag," he muttered, tossing on the ramp, "start setting them up at random intervals between the cones that Lily's laying out."

"So it's just a normal obstacle course?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Okay!" she said, grinning cheerfully as she raced for the bag and got to work. Sooner than usual Gajeel was standing in front of the large group of little kids, his hands on his hips.

"This is an obstacle course," he told them. "I want you to run through it as quickly as you can and try not to kill yourself, got it?" Then he promptly stepped aside from the entrance. "What's taking so long?" he barked. "Run!"

The kids raced away, more to get away from the scary man than because they wanted to play on the obstacle course. Gajeel walked along behind them, casually picking up the ones that fell panting with exhaustion and setting them on the other side of the cones. There were all of five kids that made it out the exit of the course, and that wasn't as big a turn out as Gajeel had hoped for.

"Those of you that didn't make it through can go home," he told the other kids callously, waving them off. The tiny man who had been overseeing the whole thing looked as if to protest, so Gajeel glared at him, effectively silencing him. "The ones that made it, you've got some basic magical abilities. Those cones have a little trick to them. They make normal people tired, understand? They make mages tired, too, but not nearly as fast."

The five left nodded hesitantly, looking from Gajeel to Lily to Levy with worried expressions. Gajeel crouched down in front of them. "That means you guys have the ability to become mages." He stood. "Now," he said, clapping his hands. "Go run through it again!"

The first half of the day was spent watching the kids run through the obstacle course over and over again. Gajeel picked the ones that fell down out of the course one by one, mentally noting who had the most magic and who the least. He stopped by Levy when the final one was done, pointing them out according to ability. She wrote it down. It was shocking, actually, just how well thought out this way of checking their abilities was, considering who was doing it. And while exhausted, none of the kids had been hurt, in fact, they were grinning happily.

"Now," Gajeel said as he stepped in front of the panting kids. "Every mage has a specialty, you know that, right? Course with time they can pick up a few more magic abilities. There's holder types, there's creation types, there's some guys that can use spirit magic. I want you to go home and find out all you can about the different types. Tomorrow I'll be at your school for your first class. Now get going!"

The kids slowly got to their feet, heading off in different ways except for the one that had lasted the longest on the obstacle course. It was a tomboyish female that looked as if she'd been in more street brawls at seven than most kids could count. "Hey, what type are you?" she demanded.

"I'm a dragon slayer," he told her. "But don't bother. There aren't any dragons around to teach you."

"Oh," she said. "Can I at least get the piercings?"

"Sure, why not?" he told her. "Now get!" He watched as she ran off, noting that she still seemed capable of running, and turned to the tiny guy that had greeted them. "Levy's got a list of the kids we'll be dealing with tomorrow. You can tell their teachers," he told him. "Now c'mon, Lily, I'm starving."

"After we clean this stuff up," Lily told him, already stacking cones. Gajeel grunted and went to work, tossing everything into the bag from wherever he stood then tying it up once everyone had cleaned everything up. He looked around for a second then started off, expecting Lily to follow.

"I'm a bit hungry, too," Levy said as she chased after them. "And I want to talk about tomorrow. I don't feel like I really did anything today," she added as she walked double time to keep up with the two males.

"Which is why I don't need a team for a mission," he told her bluntly. "Lily and me do just fine."

Which Lily couldn't argue, but he did glare at the dragon slayer for saying it so bluntly. "Oh, I knew that already," Levy said as Gajeel reached the inn they were staying at and headed inside. "I just wanted to come for the library."

"Nice to know," Gajeel drawled as they grabbed one of the inn tables and waited for a waitress to come. Soon they were eating, which was a bit strange with Levy sitting there with them. Usually the two either ate alone or with another of the dragon slayers in the guild. But unlike the other ten people in the inn's dining room, she didn't even wince as Gajeel pulled out a pile of wrenches and gears for his dessert.

"You aren't planning on destroying any buildings, are you?" Levy asked.

"Not at the moment."

"That's good," she said.

"We haven't been known for destroying many buildings, except for the-" Lily stopped, recalling the host club. "Well, one or two," he finished modestly.

"Then I'm going to the library. You're welcome to join me if you want!"

"No thanks," Gajeel said, earning a kick under the table from Lily. "What?" he asked in an almost silent hiss.

"Go with her to the library."

"Why? It'll be boring as hell."

Lily just looked at him pointedly. Gajeel gave him his most deadly glare, which did nothing at all. "Fine, I'll g-" Levy was already gone, leaving the two to look idiotic all on their own.

"Even if you have a chance against the fishtail and the hat head, you apparently have no chance against a massive library," Lily said finally.

"Brilliant deduction, jackass," Gajeel muttered, making Lily smirk.


	3. Disconcerting

Here's chapter three of the Magic Can Be... series! I hope you enjoy this one! And ShyButterflyKiss: It's ep 48, they usually come out on Mondays^^

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**Magic Can Be...**

_Chapter 3: Disconcerting_

She had forgotten to rent a room, Levy thought in self-disgust as she entered the inn late at night. The man at the counter informed her, sadly, that there were no rooms to be had at the moment, leaving her with a dilemma. Reluctantly she asked for Gajeel and Lily's room number, intent on telling them that she was going to find somewhere else to stay.

The sound of yelling and laughter caught her ears even as she walked down the hall to the room. Before coming on this trip she had never imagined that just the two of them would find so much time to... well... play. In fact the words "Gajeel" and "play" had never existed in the same sentence for her when he had first joined the guild. Of course their idea of playing probably wasn't the same as most people, she added silently as she knocked on the door.

The noise went silent. A second later the door burst open, revealing a boxer clad dragon slayer whose hair was still wet from a bath. "What?" he demanded.

"Um, I forgot to rent-" she started out.

"It's eleven at night," Lily said as he stepped into view, wearing a towel. "You're probably not going to find somewhere. We've got two beds."

"But Gajeel said-"

"We gotta be up before seven tomorrow morning," Gajeel muttered as he reluctantly stepped aside. "You can have Lily's bed. If you think you can sleep in here without dying," he added evilly. She swallowed, still not quite comfortable with his streak of evil.

"Lily seems to have survived your snoring," she said finally. "And you slept right across from me half of the trip here, so I'm sure I'll be fine," she added, stubbornly. Not that she had planned on sleeping in the room with them, but now it was a challenge! She wasn't going to back down, not when he had dared her like that!

Of course, the evil smile he gave her in response made her doubt the decision, at least, until she saw Lily again. Something about the Exsheed running around in a towel and a turban just completely ruined the dangerous atmosphere. And when he yelled at Gajeel, saying, "You still haven't dried you hair, dammit!" everything seemed right (if really strange) in the world.

"I'm going, I'm going," Gajeel muttered as he headed for the bathroom, trails of water streaming down his back.

"One day I swear I'm cutting it off," Lily complained, his arms crossed over his chest and one foot tapping on the ground. The Exsheed looked up at her, raising an eyebrow. "You're probably not going to get a bath tonight."

"It's um, okay, I took one yesterday?" she offered, mentally making a note to find a public bathhouse tomorrow. She couldn't help remembering just how naked Gajeel had been when answering the door. "Does he run around like that a lot?" she asked him.

"He's not a stripper like Gray," Lily said.

"Lucy told me that when he and Natsu fought the first time they both wound up taking their shirts off for no reason," she told him, just because he seemed so offended by the accusation that it struck her as funny.

His look of irritation proved she was right. "That's because they're idiots," he summed up as Gajeel walked out of the bathroom, rubbing his hair roughly with a towel.

"Who's an idiot?"

"You and Natsu," Levy informed him.

"Natsu's the idiot, not me," Gajeel muttered irritably, tossing the towel into the corner and climbing into the bed nearest the window.

She looked at him, then at the Exsheed who was wearing a pair of boxers much like Gajeel's. "I'll just use the restroom and get changed, then," she said as Lily climbed into Gajeel's bed with a sigh.

She decided to take a bath when she saw that there was a lock on the door. Not that a lock would really stop the dragon if he wanted in, but it'd give her warning. When she came out, though, the two males were sound asleep. And for the first time in her life, Levy seriously wondered if she lacked sex appeal.

* * *

"Wake up," a deep voice demanded, accompanied by a shake of her shoulder. Levy's eyes opened slowly and she bit back a scream. Gajeel's face was not one she was used to seeing first thing in the morning. "Go get dressed, we gotta go." Then he walked away, leaving her to gain her bearings. She sat up, glancing at the little sink outside the bathroom where the two males were brushing their teeth.

Brushing their teeth, her mind repeated. That was something she had never ever imagined Gajeel doing. An incredulous expression crossed her face as she crawled out of her bed and dug through her luggage for clothes. She had to inch past them to get into the bathroom so she could change. If Jet and Droy ever heard about last night she was positive they would never let it die.

"You should get a room before you go to the library," Lily told her as she came out. They were both dressed and ready to go by then. "They might have an empty room now."

She nodded and started brushing her own teeth and her hair at the same time. She had barely managed to rinse and spit before she was chasing them out the door. This wasn't what she was used to in the least. Usually she had the lead, letting Droy and Jet follow along behind her. But right now she felt like the weak link in the team. It was... disconcerting. And their conversations were completely different from the ones she was used to.

"Your swordsmanship needs work," Lily was telling Gajeel as they walked down the street. "You're a good fighter, but you use too much excess energy. You should try sparring with Erza sometime."

Gajeel grunted. "I'm not really a swordsman," he told Lily. "Besides, I'm good enough to keep you busy."

"Not with a sword, you're not," Lily said.

"Guys? What are we doing for today's class?" Levy asked, speeding up so she was walking beside them.

"Swordplay," they both said, looking at her in the same way and using the same tone.

"Wh-what?" she asked, so shocked that they left her behind. "What does swordplay have to do with teaching basic magic?" she demanded before breaking into a run to chase after them.

"It's a weapon, right?" Gajeel said with a shrug as they crossed a street and he stopped at a booth, buying food for himself and Lily. He handed Lily the pancake like roll and bit into his own, looking as if he would leave. Quickly Levy bought herself some food, not sure what it was she was eating, but not having the time to care. Surprisingly, it was pretty good. "Well magic is a weapon, too."

"Not all magic," Lily said. "But they might as well see what a real weapon can do before we arm them with one."

She was stuck pondering that comment as they introduced themselves to the principal of the local school and headed out back with the five kids from the day before. Lily dropped the usual bag on the ground next to Gajeel and the dragon slayer started digging through it, pulling out seven wooden swords. After an amused glance at Levy, he pulled out an eighth, tossing it to her before he turned to the class.

"Everyone knows what this is, right?" he demanded, earning nods. He tossed out the swords for the kids to catch (or not, depending on their hand eye coordination) and went on, "this is a weapon. It's not a very good weapon. It doesn't have a sharp edge, you can't eat it when you get hungry-"

"Only you think a good weapon doubles as a snack," Lily told him.

"Yeah, yeah," Gajeel muttered. "But like I was saying, this is a weapon. Now how many of you know why I'm going to make you learn how to use it?"

Every single one of the kids looked blank. When no one offered a response Lily stepped forward, holding up his wooden blade. "You're going to learn to use this weapon for a couple of reasons. First, in some circumstances even when you have magic, you won't be able to use it. Second, this is a weapon. Your magic is a weapon. Weapons can hurt people, or they can protect people, it all depends on the person holding it." The foot tall Exsheed stood in front of the children, looking much like a fluffy drill sergeant. "You should never, ever forget that fact."

And Lily promptly took over the class, lining the kids up so they were at a good distance away from each other and setting them to work learning the basic swings and lunges. Levy watched for a second then moved closer to Gajeel. "Did you, um, add this part because of Lily?" she asked quietly.

"Nah, but he does it better than I do."

When the kids were sufficiently exhausted they sat down on the grass again and watched as Gajeel moved forward to lecture them. "You got a lot of people that think because magic is powerful you don't need to focus on your body strength. That's a lie. A good magic fight has both, and a good mage can do more than one thing. Now, how many of you did your homework?"

The conversation started up about all the different types of magic and what each kid liked best at the moment. Levy found herself joining the talk happily and telling them about all the different ways that the same type of magic could be used. Even Gajeel seemed more relaxed as he talked with the kid. He stopped abruptly, turning to look at the building for a second before holding up a hand. "Looks like the bell just rang," he told them. "So I'm going to give you your homework for tomorrow. You each have an idea of what interests you the most, right? So I want you to figure out how you would use that power. Now get." They left, leaving the three "teachers" sitting on the grass with their wooden swords.

"Might as well," Lily said, jumping to his feet and shifting into his original body. "Bring it on, Gajeel," he said, motioning the metal dragon closer with his free hand.

"You asked for it," Gajeel said as he stood. The two started to spar, gaining a crowd of kids to watch them. Levy stood there, wondering just where they got the idea that this was acceptable on school grounds. Then again, she thought, they were staying on the ground and in a small space.

Lily called a stop a few minutes later when he abruptly poofed back into his small version. "That's so irritating," he muttered.

"Oh well," Gajeel said, tossing his wooden sword into the bag. He grabbed Levy's, looking her in the eye for a second until she let him take it. It was a strange sensation, as if he was taking her defense away even though she knew that was ridiculous. She took a deep breath and relaxed as he broke eye contact. "Tomorrow I'm going to make you teach," he told her.

"What am I teaching?" she asked.

"Magic can be..." Gajeel started out slowly.

"Fun," Lily finished for him. "It's about how magic can be an art form, or a way of expressing yourself. You'd never think Gajeel would come up with that one, would you?"

"How do you usually do that class?" she asked curiously.

"He makes them a playground," Lily answered for him.

"You have a habit of wearing them out before you start teaching, don't you?" Levy asked dryly. "Does it work?"

"Have you noticed it not working?" Gajeel asked. "Now go rent a room and go off to your library already, that's what you want to do, right?"

She watched him walk away, wondering why she felt a little bit abandoned by that statement, then shrugged and headed off to find an inn.

Lily looked at Gajeel, then, when that didn't work, kicked him in the shin. It didn't work the way it should have, he thought as he winced. Those metal lined books were pure murder on the bare toes. "You idiot," he muttered.

"You're the one that just kicked a metal boot," Gajeel said.

"You're never going to get a girlfriend."

The metal dragon sputtered for a second before glaring at the Exsheed. "So, talked to the queen any time recently?" he asked once he got his temper in check.

"This is this and that is that," Lily muttered, glowering up at Gajeel. "See, there's a chance that Charle's father is still around. With you, we already cleared the fact that she's not interested in fishtail and hat head. There's nothing standing in your way-" He stopped, looking up as they passed the massive library. "Except that," he added reluctantly. "That definitely has a leg up on you," he added.

"Thanks for reminding me," Gajeel snarled, his exaggerated irritation clear on his face. Lily smirked.

"But she did seem a bit impressed with your teaching methods."

"I made it up," Gajeel admitted, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Then I was too lazy to come up with something else when it worked the first time."

"Did your dragon teach you like that?"

"Nah," Gajeel said. "Not really." He stood there, staring up at the library for a long moment before turning away. They didn't see Levy again for the rest of the day.


	4. Defensive

Here's chapter four, and by now you'll probably start yelling at me because I failed to mention that this isn't a very... hearts and flowers romance. I mean, the romance is there, but it's somewhat awkward thanks to Gajeel being socially inept and Levy being oblivious. And seriously, I wanted to leave her in their hotel room, but just like Mao-neechan said, it's not very realistic. Besides, it adds for a tiny, but interesting little plot device later on in this fic^^

And don't worry about them playing favorites^^ The only reason I even brought up the tomboy is because she's a plot device, too. None of the three single her out in class, if anything, Gajeel would make the class harder on her (he's a bully like that.)

* * *

**Magic Can Be...**

_Chapter 4: Defensive_

"Why did you whisper all through my class?" Levy demanded of the two as soon as Gajeel had given the kids their homework for the next day and sent them off. Gajeel and Lily looked patently innocent, even going so far as to raise one eyebrow at her as if they didn't know what she was talking about. Of course she had no proof. She hadn't heard them, and neither had any of the kids, but she knew they had been talking. "I know all about your whispering trick, don't forget it!"

"We were just admiring your work," Lily said innocently.

"Seriously? I thought I botched it," she admitted, looking at her attempt at making a playground out of her solid script. She waved a hand and it disappeared, leaving an empty field. "If Gajeel had been doing it they would have a playground that lasted," she added.

"You did fine," Gajeel said. "Tomorrow we're bringing in some of the local mages based on the magic the kids have chosen. I got a list last night from the local guild council. Tonight I'll be hunting the ones in town down."

"Do you want to come?" Lily asked.

"But we have two more days," Levy said. "Shouldn't they come on the last day?"

"Sometimes it takes two days to hunt them down," Gajeel said. "Besides, this gives all the mentors a chance to show off their skills and lets me relax."

"But you do have a lesson for tomorrow, don't you?" she asked. "You checked their magical aptitude, you taught them that it was a weapon, and you taught them that it was fun. What about the other things?"

"Like how to do it?" Gajeel asked. "That's what their mentors need to show them. I'm just here to get things set up. I can't rightly teach them how to turn their body parts into iron, you know? Spells, motions, chants, all that depends on what type of magic they pick. You know that as well as anyone." He looked at Lily. "You got the paperwork?"

"The basics," Lily said. "We take pictures of the kids along with their basic magic level and what they're interested in then give them to the mages we think will work for them. Once we've got all that set up, we get paid."

"Don't you get attached?" she asked quietly.

"To what?" Gajeel replied. "The kids? Hell, I haven't even gotten attached to my own guild. Why should I be attached to a bunch of snot-nosed annoying brats? We're just here to do a job and get enough money to pay for the rent."

"Besides, they're taken care of," Lily finished.

And it seemed like they meant it until they found the last of the prospective mentors. He was lounging in his guild hall, drunk. Gajeel looked down at the picture of the little tomboy that he held then at the drunken slob he was going to be handing her over to. A sword mage, the man was known for his skill in requpping both swords and guns. From his stats he should have been perfect. From his smell he was a washed-out drunken bastard that hadn't taken a bath in weeks.

"Were there any other choices?" Gajeel asked Lily silently.

"He's the best in the area."

"Let's take her back to Erza," Gajeel muttered as he turned, starting to leave.

"Erza isn't in line to be a mentor," Lily said, scowling slightly. "Most likely she's going to be the next Guild Master."

"Seriously?" Gajeel demanded a bit too loudly. It woke the drunk up.

"Who the hell are you?" the man demanded, staggering to his feet. "What are you doing in my guild?"

"I'm not giving the girlie to him!" Gajeel snarled, ignoring the threatening drunk except to point at him. "She's got promise, he's got-hygiene issues."

"Wh-are you the kid that they told me about?" the man asked, sobering up slightly. "The one looking for mentors for kids."

"He is," Levy said before Gajeel could start a fight. "But the one you're supposed to get is his favorite." Not that Gajeel had ever said that, or even shown it, but she had figured it out by the slight smirk on his face when he looked at the girl, and when he said she had promise.

"So you're saying I'm not good enough?" the man demanded, crossing the room. He almost walked perfectly straight.

"Your breath could peel paint," Gajeel snarled, not about to back down. "I was fine with the other mages, they looked like they actually cared about their work, but you-"

"If you can get cleaned up we'll let you come to the school the day after tomorrow," Levy said. "But we'll be keeping an eye on you," she added.

Gajeel glowered at the sword mage, clearly not agreeing with this plan. "You aren't that great a looker, either," the sword mage told him. "What idiot let a guy like you teach kids, anyway? You look like a mass murderer."

"Mass might be exaggerating," Lily said.

"Might," Gajeel said blandly, smiling a sharp toothed grin that made you question that statement.

"We really want a good mentor for this girl," Levy said, pushing forward. "She has a great amount of magic ability and promise. She could easily become an S class mage. Do you think you can teach her?"

The man went silent. "I'll sober up," he muttered, turning and walking away.

Levy tugged on Gajeel's shirt, forcing him to follow her out of the guild. He waited until he was outside before demanding, "What the hell were you thinking?"

"If he has enough determination to become one of the greatest mages in the area then he can stay sober long enough to teach a little girl how to do it, too," she told him. "Something must have happened to make him like that."

"What-"

"Everyone in Fairy Tail has a story behind them," she told him. "Even you, Gajeel. Everyone has sadness or something that tears them apart so much that they can't handle it sometimes. But if he isn't sober and clean by the day after tomorrow we'll find someone else. Even if they're not the best."

He looked as if she was going to protest, but she didn't let him. "You did research!" she said, moving so she was right in front of his face. "Who did you go to for it? The guild council, right? Who was it that told you about him?"

"His guild master," Gajeel said. "The bastard lied to me-"

"I don't think so," she said. "A guild master has an invested interest in both their members now and the members in the future. He wouldn't have lied to you... not without a reason." That stubborn look on her face made him hesitate and she plowed forward now that she had the upper hand. "This time you don't have a choice, you're going with me to the library," she ordered him. "Both of you."

When she turned and stormed towards the library building the two males looked at each other. Lily shrugged, taking to the air. They had no choice, it seemed. They didn't even have time to look at the massive building she led them into, she reached back and grabbed both of them and hauled them to a special section that practically vibrated with magical energy. "This is the hall of mages," she told them. "It gives information on all but the most secret missions that have happened. We're going to look up what happened to the sword mage Ginko," she informed them, turning to search through the books.

Idly Gajeel looked around, wondering where to even start. Before he came to the conclusion that it might be alphabetical she had already pulled out a book and was flipping through it rapidly, a pair of glasses perched on her nose. She looked so damn cute that way, he thought, completely distracted from the subject at hand. She shoved a strand of hair behind her ear and made a sound of triumph. "I've found it!"

"Found what?" he asked.

"A month ago he returned from an S-class mission," she started out, her smile fading rapidly. "And when he came home he found out that his wife and son, who had been visiting her mother, had died in a train wreck on the way home." She looked up at him. "His son had only been two years old."

"Huh," he said.

"Just 'huh'?" she asked. "That's all you can say?"

"The only family I've ever had was an arrogant ass," he said. But a slight frown pulled at his lips. "He could have stopped the train wreck with no problem, couldn't he have?"

"If he had been there," she agreed. "You automatically jumped to that conclusion, didn't you?"

"It's only logical," Lily said, looking through a book of his own. "Any man would think that way."

"But he couldn't have stopped it when he was out of town," she said. "He let himself go, obviously."

"What are you thinking?" Gajeel asked.

"I'm hoping that he does what he promised to do," she said quietly, closing the book. She looked over at Lily. "What have you found?" she asked.

"Gajeel's book," he said.

"What?" Gajeel demanded, his eyes widening. "Put that back!"

"It's interesting," Lily said, not about to back down. "There's a massive difference between your Fairy Tail missions and your Phantom Lord missions."

Gajeel growled as Levy instantly joined the Exsheed, reading the book with interest. He crossed the room and slammed the book on their fingers. "That's personal," he muttered. "Where'd you get this from?" he asked Lily.

"Right there," Lily said. Gajeel slammed the book back into its place.


	5. Rough

Chapter five here, with um... Levy being adorable and Gajeel being, um, Gajeel and stuff. Enjoy!

And it was suggested I add some details on the other kids, so I did^^ (while trying not to distract from the Gajeel/Levy, thank you, Nukku/Mao.) BTW, Bixlow is like, one of my favorite minor characters, and if Cana/Macao wasn't pretty much canon I would so try and shove Cana and him together. You get a nod (and a shudder) towards him in this chapter, hope you don't mind!

Plus a little bonus at the end of this one, enjoy!

* * *

**Magic Can Be...**

_Chapter 5: Rough_

It was a shock the next morning as they stepped onto the school campus and saw Ginko standing to the side. He smelled sober and clean. He looked as if he had a hangover, but he was staring at Gajeel as the metal dragon crossed the yard. Levy broke into a smile. "I told you he would," she bragged at Gajeel.

"We'll see," Gajeel said, slinging his bag off of his shoulder and handing it to Lily. Lily flew to the field they had been using, going to set up their exercise. It was simply to wear them out before Gajeel introduced the mentors. There were wooden blades and a smaller version of the obstacle course.

The other four mentors filtered in as the kids came out, grinning happily at the sight of the three Fairy Tail mages. Gajeel split them up, sending three of them through the course and sending the other two to work with Lily and the wooden swords. He motioned Levy over to watch the ones on the obstacle course and headed for the mentors.

"These are them," he told them. "They've got a decent amount of promise. You've already seen all their information, but they've got no clue who you are," he went on callously. "So I suggest you impress them."

"We're going to be teaching them, why should we have to impress them?" Ginko asked irritably.

Gajeel thought about it for a moment. "I was taught by a dragon," he said abruptly, much to their shock. "He was an ass, but still, no matter what you do I wouldn't be impressed enough to want to follow you around for years, learning all the stuff you can do. You can't beat my old man," he went on bluntly. "When your student's full grown, don't you want them saying something along the same lines?"

"He has a point," one of the other would-be mentors said. She was a celestial spirit mage, who Gajeel (and the guild council) had picked for a promising little blonde that carried a doll with her all the time. He hadn't been surprised by her choice of magic. She reminded him a little of the bunny girl from the guild. "And you picked us out for these kids?"

"The Guild Council suggested you," Gajeel said. "I asked for the best mentors in the fields they wanted to go into, because I ain't turning them over to a second rate mage. This is my mission and I'm not going to screw it up. Now it's up to you to prove them right," he said, looking straight at Ginko. "Or wrong." Ginko glowered at him for that statement but Levy moved in front of Gajeel before a fight could erupt.

"They're tired now," she told them. "I mean, they're ready now," she said, looking adorably sheepish. Gajeel grunted and turned to the group of kids sitting on the grass, assuming his spot in front of them.

"Alright," he said. "For today and tomorrow we're going to be seeing some of the mages from the local guilds. These guys are the best around, understand?"

The kids cheered and the tomboy girl said, "It's about time!" Gajeel snorted and looked over at the mages, calling them forward and briefly explaining what sort of magic they did. The kid that he had lined them up for always looked excited, watching in wonder as their prospective mentor did a demonstration. There was a good variety including the celestial mage, from a wood creation mage for a tough little boy that loved the obstacle course, to a telepath for the quiet kid who seemed to notice the most. (Gajeel still found it irritating when people talked directly into his head. For some reason it always tended to echo.) The last mage up was one of those creepy guys that dealt with trapping souls, like Bixlow. Gajeel had been a bit surprised by that one, actually. The little boy that was interested in it seemed to be the most normal of the group, but he was the first one to shake hands with the sock monkey that talked and floated in the air.

Each of the mages that showed seemed a lot more enthusiastic about the mentor job once they had seen the looks on the kids' faces. They even thanked Gajeel as they sat down discreetly closer to their student to watch the next performer. (Or somewhat discreetly. The celestial mage dropped down right next to the blonde and introduced herself to the doll. And the creepy soul trapper sat down, only to find his prospective student boldly moving to his side.) But Gajeel didn't call Ginko forward before the day ended and he let the kids go.

"Why didn't I get to show?" Ginko demanded lowly once the kids were out of hearing distance.

"Because I didn't feel like it. Tomorrow you're going to go up against my cat. You need to save your energy for it."

"Your cat?" Ginko asked in outrage. "You're going to make me face off against a cat?" he demanded, waving a hand at Lily.

"He'll try not to kick your ass too badly," Gajeel said smugly. "Besides, after the swordplay lessons we shoved down their throat they at least deserve to see something good," he added, much to Ginko's shock.

"He's a foot tall cat," Ginko repeated.

"Are you making fun of my cat?" Gajeel demanded, getting in Ginko's face with pointed teeth bared.

"I think he's been doing that from the start," Lily said darkly.

"Now, now," Levy said, moving between the two males. "This will be good," she told Ginko. "Lily's even sparred with Erza, you know. He's a very good swordsman."

"Erza Scarlet? Fairy Tail's Titania?" Ginko asked, looking at the Exsheed in confusion. "Well... okay, fine. I'll do it."

"Try, um, try not to get drunk tonight, please," Levy added as he started to walk away. He lifted a hand, not looking back as he walked away. She turned to Gajeel once he was gone. "Everyone looked really happy!" she said with a bright smile. "Did you see the celestial mage pair? I could have sworn they were going to play dolls as soon as the class was over. But why didn't you call Ginko today?" she asked.

"He was hung over," Gajeel said. "Hard to do a good showing when you've got a hangover. Or do you want him to look bad in front of her?"

She nodded and let it die. "You know," she said after a second of thought. "You're not nearly as big of a jerk as you used to be."

"Why do you think he's bothering with this?" Gajeel asked her.

"Because," she said. "That little girl needs him. It's the first person since the accident that has, right?"

He went silent, looking over at Lily. Maybe, he thought, there was something important about being needed. Even if technically he was certain Lily could do just fine without him. But that didn't matter. Lily was his cat. His.

"Huh," he said. There was a big importance to having someone that was yours, after all. He of all the people in the guild knew that best.

"I'm starving," Levy announced. "Let's go get something to eat."

"What, not going to the library?" Gajeel asked.

"Not yet," she said. "I want another one of those pancake things we got for breakfast the other day. How'd you find them, anyway?"

"I've done a job in this town before," he said, frowning slightly as his days from being in Phantom Lord flashed back to his mind. Lily was right. His missions now were nothing like his old missions. They were a lot more... innocent, his mind provided as he looked at the girl looking up at him expectantly. Except for the one the Master asked him to do, that was.

"Gajeel?" she asked, alerting him to the fact that he had gone silent.

"Yeah, let's go," he said roughly, turning and heading for the streets. Who he was now was not who he used to be. But he had to be careful. If he changed too much he would have trouble doing his special mission. As if he hadn't had enough trouble as it was.

As he ate with her he probed his own thoughts, coming to a realization that he had been trying to avoid. He liked her. Sure, even Lily knew that. But he couldn't do anything about it, not with how things were with Raven Tail. "After this," he said quietly, "you need to go back to your team."

She looked hurt for a second before flashing him an empty smile. "I was planning on it," she told him. "You've proved that you and Lily can easily do jobs like this without me. Besides, I only came for the library."

"Yeah," he said. "Yeah."

* * *

"What the hell are you thinking?" Lily demanded that night, standing on his bed wearing only a pair of boxers. He got them from the same place that Gajeel got his, simply because it was easier than hunting down all the various shopping places in Fiore for a pair of boxers. "You as good as tossed her out the door."

"There's some stuff I can't tell you about, okay?" Gajeel snapped. "But it's important that I can't get too close to them!"

"Them? Or her?"

"Her! Especially her, okay?" Gajeel bellowed. "The last person in the entire guild that I should be getting close to is-"

"The one you like the best," Lily finished, scowling.

"I don't like anyone in the guild," the metal dragon lied, turning away. "We need to leave it that way." He roughly dried his hair and tossed the towel to the side, climbing into the bed. Lily hadn't even bothered trying to sleep in the bed that Levy had used the first night. Even after the maids had come and changed the sheets- "It stinks in here," Gajeel muttered.

It smelled like Levy. It was a sweet, if somewhat dusty smell of someone that spent too much time surrounded by old books. "Sure," Lily muttered, leaning back against the headboard of the bed and crossing his arms over his chest. "What about me?" he asked abruptly.

"What about you?"

"I'm a part of the guild now."

Gajeel went silent. "You'll understand when it happens," he muttered finally. "She won't. None of them will, dammit. And even after it's over they'll still... they'll still wonder."

The guilt and righteous rage in that tone confused Lily for a moment. But he had figured out a while back that it was more than just Gajeel's low standing in the guild that bothered him. "How do you know I'll understand?"

"Because," Gajeel said. "You're my cat."

They lay there silently, staring up at the ceiling as they each wrestled with their own thoughts. "Are we going to wind up kicked out of the guild because of something you've done?" Lily asked finally.

"Hell if I know," Gajeel muttered. "It doesn't matter. One guild is as good as another." But that blustering tone showed that it was obvious he didn't think that. "Besides, even if I'm kicked out, you don't have to be." He couldn't do that to his cat. Not to Pantherlily.

"Can you stop it from happening?"

"No," Gajeel said. "Trust me, if I could I would!" he snapped, his frustration showing. "If that-dammit, I can't even say that much! Just trust me, it's going to happen, and hell, if I get tossed out, then... I'll find something to do. That's if Salamander doesn't try to kill me first," he added darkly.

This time Lily stayed silent, and slowly the two males fell into an uneasy sleep, each thinking the same thing. It stank.

* * *

**Teacher's Pet **

**(Because it had to be done)**

"Admit it! Sensei Gajeel likes you best!" The four other students surrounded the little tomboy, rage in their eyes. "He does! He's always letting you play with the wooden sword!"

"Yeah? Well you like the obstacle course and you're always on that! Some of us might want to play on that, too," the tomboy snapped back, glowering at the tough kid. They hadn't ever really gotten along, not since he had fallen a few minutes before she did on their first day.

"Yeah, well, you're the teacher's pet! He even let you go first!"

"I'm not the teacher's pet! And even if I was-" They went silent as Pantherlily walked past them, carrying a gigantic metal wheel.

"Gajeel," he said, shoving it up at his partner, ignorant of the kids' watchful eyes. "There was a wreck on the street earlier, so I figured I'd grab this for you."

Gajeel looked at the wheel, then hauled poor Lily into his arms, hugging him tightly. "You are so awesome!" he said joyously. "Hey, is there any more of this out there?"

"He's such a teacher's pet," the tough boy muttered, crossing his arms over his chest and scowling.

"A total kiss-up," the tomboy agreed, her scowl just as dark.

Levy sighed, having heard every word. There was no way she could argue it, after all. Lily was, and always would be Gajeel's favorite.


	6. Deceitful

Here's chapter 6, with a bit of an explanation to what Gajeel was thinking in the last chapter^^ Sorry about the angst, guys, I really am, but halfway through writing this fic I realized that Raven Tail has got to be weighing on his mind, so I tossed it in. And we get to see Gajeel and Lily argue in this one! I haven't really done much of them arguing in my fics, so I rather enjoyed this (might be a bit sadistic, too, now that she thinks of it.) And yay, Mirime is back!

As for fairy tale type endings... I really don't think I can get Gajeel into a pair of tights... Maybe, possibly on a horse... *tries to picture Gajeel as a misunderstood prince charming, only to come up with the image of him lounging on the throne, the king laid out at his feet, and eating the royal scepter* But I'm not making any promises on either of them coming to a grand understanding of what's going on before it happens. Gajeel's far too much of a jerk on a regular basis for Levy to realize he's acting really strange.

Oh, and just for anyone curious, Ginko isn't on Erza's level. He can't requip in the middle of a fight, he has to rely on the weapon or armor that he's gotten out beforehand, and he can only requip up to fifty different weapons and five different armors. But he's a good, solid mage and an excellent fighter (as well as aim) when he's sober. He deserves his S class title in the guild he's at^^

* * *

**Magic Can Be...**

_Chapter 6: Deceitful_

Gajeel didn't trust them. He didn't trust Makarov, not on a deep level. He wanted to, sure. He wanted to accept that fatherly smile, the pat on the shoulder. It was almost a desperate need to be treated like that. But he couldn't trust it. On some level he was positive that making him a double spy was just a way of using him and getting rid of him as soon as it was over. He would inform Makarov of everything he needed to know, then once it got out that he was "working for Master Ivan" Makarov would never tell the others that he was working for Makarov as well.

He'd be tossed out as easily as that. Makarov would have everything he wanted, including getting rid of a pain in the ass like Gajeel, all in one swoop. Gajeel would be used and discarded like a faulty weapon. They wouldn't believe Gajeel over the guild master. Hell, he wouldn't believe Gajeel over the guild master, and he was Gajeel!

He looked over at the cat sleeping on the pillow next to his, his eyes tracing the furry form. It would figure, he thought derisively, just after he got his cat he would lose everything. This new life, this hint of acceptance that he got once in a while, it was too good to be true. Even if half of the guild still didn't trust him, he had never had something like this before.

That's why he kept going. That's why he was so willing to do what Makarov told him, even though his gut was telling him it was a trap. And even if it was, he thought, staring up at the ceiling and knowing he really should get to sleep, he owed them his protection. Even if he got tossed out, he would at least have tried to help save the guild before he was. Maybe three times was enough to make up for the one time he had tried to destroy it.

He doubted it. But, he thought, picturing that empty, fake smile on Levy's face from earlier, maybe there was a way for him to make sure they knew what he was doing regardless of what Makarov said... he would have to think about it. Needless to say, Gajeel didn't get much sleep that night.

* * *

The atmosphere was tense, and it bothered her. Levy looked from Gajeel to Lily, a slight frown on her lips. "Did you two have a fight?" she asked as they walked up to her.

"If we had had a fight we'd be in a better mood," Lily said, shooting a dark look at his partner.

"Not that kind of fight," she said, looking at Gajeel this time. That old look, the one that he had always shown before Lily came around was plastered on his face. She had forgotten how stark and angry it was. Sure he yelled a lot now, but it had always been emotional. The emotion was banked in his narrow red eyes. "Did one of you kick the other out of bed?"

"This is the last day," Gajeel said. "Let's get it over with."

"I don't think so," Levy said, grabbing the back of his shirt. "If you go there with this attitude you'll wind up starting a fight with Ginko. You need to make up."

"We aren't fishtail and hat head," Gajeel snarled, turning so he was in her face. "We don't follow you around like puppies. So where the hell do you get off telling us what to-" He grunted as Lily jumped up, booting him to the head. It tossed him into the brick wall beside him, making him curse. "What was that for?" he demanded of his cat.

"This has nothing to do with her, remember?" Lily said. "You're the one that decided that, so don't go taking it out on innocent bystanders."

"She's the one telling us what to do," Gajeel muttered, rubbing his head. "You kicked too hard, you jerk," he added, glowering at the Exsheed.

"I've hit you harder," Lily said, glaring right back.

"You startin' something?" Gajeel demanded.

"You're the one starting it! She was just worried about us!"

"Well she shouldn't be!"

"Then tell her that instead of trying to pick a fight with her!" Lily, shockingly, bellowed right back, growing to his original size to shout right in Gajeel's face.

"Is that why you're making me face your cat?"

The question stopped everyone and they turned, looking at Ginko blankly. Lily reverted to his smaller size with a poof, distracted from his change. Gajeel grunted and sniffed the air to make sure the man was sober. He looked a bit haggard, but he smelled like soap and coffee. "Yeah," Gajeel said, calming down. "He's awesome, and you better believe it," he added defensively.

Ginko nodded, still looking at Lily curiously. "I've never seen a flying, shape changing cat before."

"He's one of a kind," Gajeel bragged. "He's the most awesome cat in the guild, bar none."

"You shouldn't put down Happy and Charle like that," Lily said, but a slight smirk was pulling at his lips thanks to the compliment.

"I'm just telling the truth," Gajeel said, crossing his arms over his chest in an arrogant manner.

"Well at least you've made up," Levy said, relaxing as she felt the tension disappear. She frowned, though, contemplating their argument for the moment she had. What on Earthland was going on between the two? Gajeel yelling at her had startled, even scared her a bit, sure, but yelling at his cat? That was shocking! She had seen how close the two were over the week, seen how they never really fought that much-sure they argued, with two such strong personalities that was inevitable, but this was different.

"Are you coming?" Gajeel asked her over his shoulder, alerting her to the fact that they had already started in the direction of the school.

Levy gave up trying to figure it out and chased after them, intent on not being left behind. Ginko followed along silently, watching the two males with a slight frown on his face. Levy couldn't help but give him a slight smile. "You've done pretty good," she told the sword mage.

"What-"

"We know," she went on quietly, "about your family. We're sorry."

"I could have stopped it."

"No, you couldn't have," she said. "But by becoming a mentor you can teach someone else to stop things like that in the future."

He nodded, shoving his hands into his jean pockets and walking silently for a moment. "He doesn't seem like that great of a guy," he said, nodding in Gajeel's direction. For a second she considered telling him about Gajeel's excellent hearing, but decided against it.

"He hasn't been," she said instead. "But I think he's changed with joining Fairy Tail." They were at the school, then, and Ginko didn't reply. The other mentors-to-be filed in behind them and they all headed for the usual field. Gajeel looked at them.

"Today we're going to finish up you guys showing off and pair you off with your kid," he said. "If there's a problem I suggest you tell me today, because after this we're heading back to our guild."

"Usually people pick their own kids to teach," the Celestial mage said. "Where'd you come up with this idea from?"

"A town sent out a bulletin looking for a more regulated method. My Guild Master shoved it on me as a form of punishment," Gajeel said bluntly. "But it turned out I was good at it. Now, any other questions?"

"What's with the cute sidekick?" the soul trapper mage asked. (Seriously, Gajeel thought, there was probably a more politically correct term for the magic, but he didn't really care. It was creepy as hell, if you asked him, and coming from a guy that ate weapons, that was saying a lot.)

"He's only cute half the time," Gajeel said. "He's pretty badass the rest of the time."

"I like to think I'm pretty badass all the time," Lily complained. "And I'm not his sidekick, I'm his partner."

"I think he meant the girl," the wood creation mage said with a hint of amusement.

"Oh," Gajeel said. "She's..." He frowned, looking as if he was having a hard time coming up with an explanation.

"I'm another mage from Fairy Tail, Levy McGarden," Levy said. "I came along because I wanted to see how he did this job, and because I really wanted to go to Brookerstein Library." They laughed, charmed by her easy smile just like everyone else tended to be. He was jealous of them getting that smile. Then again, he didn't deserve a smile, he admitted, as blunt with himself as he was with everyone else.

The kids came out, running towards the group of mages. It was a real difference from the first time he did this job, he thought as he caught their bright smiles. Lily had done that. Levy had helped. The kids pulled to a stop, hesitating as they caught sight of his dark expression until Levy turned her heart-stopping smile on them.

"Hi, guys!" she said. "Today we're going to-"

"Have Ginko show you what he can do," Gajeel said, stepping forward. "After that we're going to pair you off with one of the mages."

"We don't get to play with the swords?" the tomboy girl asked with a pout.

"You'll have plenty of opportunities to play with swords in the future," Lily told her with a crooked smile. "Trust me on this. Now everyone sit down, Gajeel-"

"On it," Gajeel said, creating a metal pole and laying it on the ground. "Behind this," he ordered the kids. They climbed over it, sitting with their prospective mentors and watching as Ginko stepped forward. Or at least, some were watching. The little blonde had brought two more of her toys and was introducing them to the celestial mage, while the tough boy was showing the wood creation mage a carving he had done. His fingers were bandaged, Gajeel noticed with a hint of amusement, but he seemed really proud of himself. He looked over at the telepath pair, but there was no way he could tell if they were chatting or not. They both seemed intent on Ginko and completely silent. As for the soul trapper pair? The kid was wrapped around the sock monkey. That was too creepy to watch, so Gajeel turned back to the front.

"I'm a sword mage," Ginko announced, standing in front of them. "There's a few of my type out there. They can use a magic called requip. This is where you pull a weapon or armor out of a special storage area using magic." He held out his hand and a sword appeared in it a second later. "Some specialize in armor, some in different types of weapons. I can do a bit of both," he added modestly, requipping into a suit of armor. "I can also requip other forms of weapons," he went on, his sword disappearing and a gun taking its place. "The importance of this magic is that it allows you to be prepared for all situations. The downside of it is that your magic isn't the only thing you're relying on. You have to know how to use the weapons you requip."

He looked at the little tomboy staring at him raptly. "That means years of sword training," he told her. "You don't automatically become a master swordsman or swordswoman just by pulling out a sword. This means that our magic is more physical than some, so you've got to be tough and strong. You got to have endurance and flexibility."

"Which we're going to show you, now," Gajeel said as Lily took on his larger form, pulling out his sword. "What, not going to use the Buster Marm?" Gajeel complained.

"On school property I don't see how that would be proper," Lily replied.

"Alright," Gajeel said, stepping back as the two swordsmen started fighting. The kids watched with rapt attention as the two started sparring. It was a quick fight, but both males were grinning slightly by the end.

"Not bad," Lily said as he poofed back to his normal size.

"You either," Ginko said with a nod of respect.

"Now I'm going to pair you off with your mentor," Gajeel said. "They'll take over from here." He called out who went with who (although everyone had pretty much figured it out already) and headed for the metal pole he had used as a fence, hauling it over his shoulder to get rid of it while the kids talked with their mentors. He almost dropped it when he realized that Levy had followed him. "What?" he demanded over his shoulder.

"You did good," she said. "I can see why Master Makarov is so intent on sending you for these jobs."

The praise was uncomfortable. He put the metal down for a moment before turning to look at her, a serious expression on his face. "You'd probably be better than I am," he told her. "They liked you better than me. Then again, who can blame them?"

"I probably would have spent the whole week lecturing the entire school about how great magic could be," she admitted. "I wouldn't have thought to weed them out like you did, or about the swordplay, or any of that. You did. You probably knew exactly what you needed to do from the beginning." She grinned up at him. "I think that time in Edolas changed you, too," she said. "Or should I say, Lily changed you?"

"I ain't that different," he told her gruffly.

"Sure you are," she said. "You're a member of Fairy Tail. That changes everyone, you know."

He snorted, watching her with eyes more gentle than he realized. "You're amazing, you know," he told her. "You seem to look for the best in everyone, even a bastard like me. You shouldn't," he went on before she could reply. "For everyone's sake, including the guild's, you shouldn't."

She looked confused by that statement and it made him feel guilty. His hand came up, almost touching her cheek, but he lowered it again before he could. "When this is over and we're back at the guild, I expect you to keep quiet about what happened this week."

"But-"

"I ain't gonna threaten you, but-"

"Sure, I'll keep it quiet."

He grunted, starting to turn away.

"I think you put yourself down too much," she told him. "At least let me consider us friends?"

"Do whatever the hell you want, it's no skin off my back," he said, walking away. Inwardly he was cursing innocent, positive thinking idiots. He swore they would be the death of him. And considering how he'd been tossed into the mess with Raven Tail, it'd be sooner than later.

"That looked promising, but you totally blew it, didn't you," Lily said as Gajeel walked past.

"Shuddup."

The ride home went much like the ride there, except Levy didn't offer Lily a seat when they started fighting over his. And as they pulled into the train station she felt a little sad that the mission was over. She was greeted by Jet and Droy the moment she got off the train, and hauled away, leaving Gajeel and Lily to do whatever they wanted.

That was the first mission she had ever had with Gajeel. She was positive that he had been lying when he implied only she thought they were friends. And even though she hardly saw him during the month after thanks to missions, it still hurt horribly when Gajeel took his place next to Master Ivan's side.


	7. Love

I never said last chapter was the end, but I got a serious kick out of letting you think it was! *grins evilly* Here's the final chapter, plus a little omake for the heck of it. I hope you guys enjoy it!

Don't forget to leave a note before you leave!

* * *

**Magic Can Be...**

_Chapter 7: Love  
_

Levy's hand went to her mouth as that familiar, yet foreign smile graced the metal dragon's lips. He looked so confident, standing there next to their enemy. Her heart broke. She heard Natsu raging over the betrayal and she knew that he was as hurt as she was. Her eyes searched through the crowd, looking for Lily. The Exsheed was scowling, but unlike the others he didn't seem heartbroken or shocked. That made Levy even sicker to her stomach.

She had trusted them. She had trusted them both, believing with her entire heart that they had changed. Her eyes went back to the metal dragon standing above them. He was looking straight at her, his eyes gleaming coldly, the grin not moving from his lips even though she knew he realized that he had betrayed her trust.

Then he slammed his fist into Master Ivan's jaw, and all hell broke loose. Her heart leaped into her throat and a silly smile pulled at her lips even as the war between the two guilds began. This, she thought, was why he had shoved her away during their mission.

She would have to yell at him for it once the war was over.

* * *

"What the hell was that?" Natsu bellowed as the wreckage from the war fell around them and the rest of the guild members cheered in victory. "You could have warned us you were going to do that!"

"And what, blow the cover I've had for months?" Gajeel bellowed right back, eye to eye with the other dragon slayer. They both looked like hell, and were already bandaged up as usual. "If you knew then he would have gotten suspicious! As it was, we barely managed to kick his ass!"

"I wouldn't have blown it!"

"You absolutely would have blown it, idiot," Gajeel muttered, calming down. He looked around, searching for someone, not that he wanted anyone to know. "Who did we lose?"

"No one," Lily said, looking a bit beat up as well. "But everyone's knocked out or getting patched up." He paused. "Levy's over there."

"What does Levy have to do with anything?" Natsu asked blankly as the metal dragon shoved himself to his feet, limping towards the unconscious bookworm.

"You still haven't figured it out?" Lily asked the fire dragon blankly.

Gajeel ignored them, dropping down next to the solid script mage and listening to her breathing and heartbeat. Both were fine. He didn't smell any blood on her either. Almost too roughly he pushed his fingers into her hair, checking for a bump.

Big brown eyes opened, looking up at him curiously. "You-" she started out hoarsely. "You've got a lot of explaining to do."

"Yeah, I know."

"To everyone, not just me," she went on. "And smiling at me! You-you big jerk! Do you have any idea what that looked like from where I was standing?"

His fingers touched a bruise and she winced, making him look guilty. Or maybe it was what she accused him of. "Sorry," he muttered almost too quietly to hear.

"What was that?" she prompted.

"I said I'm sorry," he muttered only a little louder. "But I didn't have a choice. It was my mission."

"Your mission to smirk at me when you were betraying the guild?" she demanded. "You big jerk! I can't believe you did that! We were supposed to be friends! I never once told people about your missions! But you know what? I'm going to tell everyone! I'm going to go confiscate the loudspeaker and announce to all of Magnolia that Gajeel Redfox likes-" She let out a little yelp as he leaned down, kissing her on the lips. When he pulled away she glared at him. "What was that for?"

"You were going to tell them anyway, right?" he said. "I might as well get something out of it."

"Likes-"

"You," he muttered, looking irritated.

"I was going to say kids," she said, touching her lips. "Did you just-"

"I'm not going to ask you out," he said bluntly. "I already heard that hat head and fishtail got turned down in two seconds flat. So I'll let you claim to be my pal, then do whatever the hell I want."

"Wh-what?" she yelped. And to her irritation he gave her that purely evil grin again. "What does that-"

He fell onto his back, closing his eyes. "Damn am I glad that's over with." Levy stared at him blankly, then watched, a bit amused, as Lily walked over to them, dropping down next to Gajeel's chest and leaning back against him.

"Still think we'll get kicked out?" Lily asked.

"I doubt anyone has a leg left to kick us with," Gajeel muttered. His red eyes turned to Levy and she let out a sigh, reluctantly lying down next to the pair. Her head hurt too much to stay upright. She had earned the wound properly from one of her best fights yet. It was a miracle she had won. She didn't even think to complain as she was pulled into the small pile, just rested her head against Gajeel's chest.

"I knew you had a heart somewhere in there," she said as she listened to his heartbeat. Since he hadn't asked her out, she couldn't turn him down. She would figure out if she was irritated by that fact later. Right now- "But your chest is really, really hard," she complained.

"Just be glad your lackeys got knocked out in the fight," he told her. "We'd never hear the end of this."

"Jet and Droy-"

"They're fine," Lily said. "At least, everyone's alive."

"I can almost feel people staring at us," Levy complained, her eyes threatening to close.

"You can't sleep," Gajeel told her. "You probably got a concussion." His fingers slid into her hair again, a lot more gently than they had before.

"I'm glad that," she said slowly, "you two aren't evil, after all." And they laid there, amidst the battlefield, surrounded by destruction, but she felt as safe as she had ever been in her life, listening to the strong, steady beating of his heart.

* * *

**The Omake**

**Characters: Lucy, Levy, Gajeel**

"How to seduce a sadist," Lucy read, much to Levy's horror. "First, be a masochist."

"I am not a masochist!" Levy said. "And seriously, I do not want to seduce a sadist! Where the-the fairy hills did you get that idea from?"

"On occasion that you are not a masochist, pretend to be one," Lucy went on. "This book is really interesting, did you know that?"

"Book?" Levy asked.

"I found it in the library, I thought it would be interesting," the celestial spirit mage said, holding up her new find. "How To: Seduction."

"Is there someone you want to seduce, Lu-chan?" Levy asked, shoving the sadist statements to the back of her mind.

"Of course not! I was just-just looking around and it caught my eye," she said. "Consider it research for my writing!"

"Give me that," Levy said, reaching for the book. She flipped through with a wicked grin. "How to seduce an idiot," she read triumphantly. "This should work for any of the guys in the guild!"

"Wear really skimpy clothing and act innocent." Gajeel's voice right by her ear made the heat creep rapidly up the back of her neck and into her cheeks. She slammed the book closed, twisting so she was hiding it behind her back. "Oye, I was reading that," he said, reaching for it.

"Are you out to seduce an idiot, Gajeel?" Lucy demanded, trying to get between the two of them in a protective manner. Unfortunately her question didn't hit the mark just right, earning her a wicked grin in return.

"Salamander isn't really my type," he said, his hand shooting out and grabbing the book from Levy. He flipped through the pages, grunting when what he saw didn't work for him. "Here we go," he said with a smug look. "How to seduce a bookworm."

"Gajeel! Don't even joke about things like that!" Levy said, reaching for the book only to have it held out of reach.

"First, find out what types of books she likes best," he said. "That one's easy. Horror novels. Second..." he paused, his grin turning treacherous. "Act like one of the main characters."

Levy's eyes went wide as he turned the devilish grin on her, full force. "I don't-I don't think they were talking about-" She took a step back, then another, letting out a yelp as he moved forward. She bumped into a table then squirreled her way under it, before giving up on hiding and racing away as fast as her legs could take her. All the while shouting, "Gajeel, you jerk!" as he chased her through the guild.

Lucy sighed, rolling her eyes as she heard Levy let out a giggle. She picked up the book that Gajeel had dropped and started flipping through it again. "How to seduce a hothead. Part one." She flipped through a few pages. "Part two... three... four... why the heck is this the only one with so many parts?" she demanded, throwing her hands in the air and tossing it over her shoulder.


End file.
